Events

Literary fiction, investigative journalism, cultural reflection, poetry … Winter Words 2015 has it all. This year’s series features some of the most heralded and innovative writers of our time. A pair of leading investigative journalists, two acclaimed novelists and a U.S. Poet Laureate make up the Aspen Writers’ Foundation’s 2014-15 Winter Words lineup, with events running from early December through mid-April in Aspen.

Please join us at Paepcke auditorium for five evenings of readings, musings, and conversations designed to challenge, surprise and delight.

Ticketing Information:

$60 Member Series Pass – Please enter discount code in “Promotional Code” box to the left. If you are a member and need the code, call 970.925.3122 ext. 3# or email: awfinfo@aspeninstitute.org

$80 Non-Member Series Pass (Passes available for purchase until DEC 2)

CORE Party is the most anticipated outdoor concert of the season. Join the FREE block party at the corner of Galena Street and Cooper Avenue in Downtown Aspen. As always, DJ Naka G will be getting things going at 6:30pm and the Bud Light beer gardens will have beer on tap for those 21 and older. Get excited!

An Oscar®-qualifying, international showcase for short film and video now in its twenty-fourth year. Named by IndieWIRE as one of the world’s top fifty film festivals. Widely recognized as a premier North American showcase for short comedy, drama, documentary and animation, Shortsfest is a destination for discovering breakthrough talent, as well as spotlighting new work by established artists. Jason Reitman (Up in the Air), Jean-Marc Vallée (Dallas Buyers Club) and Sarah Polley (Stories We Tell) are among notable alumni whose earliest work-shorts-first screened at Aspen Shortsfest.

The festival brings the year’s most imaginative films and storytellers to Aspen through this ground-breaking medium largely unavailable to general audiences. The program will include several premieres, critically acclaimed films and favorites from the international festival circuit. Attendees will enjoy a film-filled week of nightly screenings and moderated conversations mixed with opportunities to engage with visiting filmmakers. Short films representing dozens of countries will ultimately be selected for this Oscar®-qualifying festival.

The tradition is back! Let’s ski, have fun & win prizes with Blitzenbanger 2015! Join us for one of the oldest community-wide celebrations Aspen – Blitzenbanger – KSPN-FM’s Birthday Bash! Once again, KSPN will celebrate their birthday with the Blitzenbanger Winter Brew-AU – a Beer Fest & Luau Party!! The event will be held in Aspen Highlands again this year.

This year Blitzenbanger will once again be even bigger with a beer fest & winter luau décor plus a kids area! This festival will bring locals and visitors alike to the base of Aspen Highlands for an on-mountain scavenger hunt starting at 9 a.m. (must have lift ticket or pass to participate), unlimited beer tastings from 15+ local & regional breweries, live music and fun!

Schneetag is the German word for “snow day.” Put simply, it translates as “daredevils willing to propel themselves down a hill, over a jump and across a pond on a craft they built themselves.”

This hilarious event is one not to miss. The 7th annual Schneetag event (pronounced Sch-knee Tog) invites teams of four to create a craft that they will pilot down a slope at Spider Sabich and attempt to float across a 75×20 foot pond. Every team has a theme and will perform a skit before they descend. This event is just as ridiculous and entertaining as it sounds.